ROCKFORD — A former downtown auto dealership could become a health clinic for city employees and their families.

A portion of the old Fran Kral Inc. building, which closed at the end of 2012 after 60 years selling cars, could be remodeled for use as the city’s new health and wellness center. It’s located at the corner of Third and Market streets, about a block from City Hall, and was purchased by city officials for $400,000 last year.

The center could provide easier access to basic and occupational health services and preventative care. A healthier workforce would save the government and taxpayers money by reducing health care costs, officials say.

City officials hope the foot traffic from the roughly 3,200 people enrolled in the city’s health insurance plan could spur private development for the rest of the Fran Kral building. The wellness center would take up just about 4,200 square feet of the 25,000-square-foot space.

Julia Scott-Valdez, the city’s human resources director and deputy city administrator, sees potential for a pharmacy or fitness center at the site. It could also house a teaching kitchen in conjunction with a small restaurant, she said.

The city will meet with potential partners during the next few weeks to determine who might want to share the space.

“We want to use the wellness center there as an anchor to start building some retail traffic to that corner,” Scott-Valdez said. “The future partners will have to complement not just a wellness center, but also complement the needs of the downtown area.”

The building was once considered as potential headquarters for a geographic policing district, but city officials eyed it for the wellness clinic after police decided it wasn’t the best fit. Police officials are still searching for a location.

City Council members will be asked Monday to authorize $256,075 to remodel the building. Council action was delayed earlier this week after some aldermen questioned whether it was the best use of the property.

“We have a valuable piece of property that we really haven’t vetted yet. Three months ago we were considering it for a police station,” Ald. Tim Durkee said Monday. “It’s clear that there’s shifting sand under the use of this building.”

Opening the wellness center at that location may handcuff a developer from purchasing it for other uses, Durkee added. He doesn’t want a government office limiting the potential for private investment.

Page 2 of 2 - Durkee, a doctor with SwedishAmerican Health System, also questioned whether wellness centers are a sustainable trend. He wants the building’s use studied by an urban planner before committing the space for the project.

“That building could stay empty for a long time if we wait for a study,” Scott-Valdez said.

The city hired Marathon Health for Life of Vermont for $818,000 a year to run the center. The contract with Marathon starts July 23, meaning the wellness clinic will open that day either inside Fran Kral or another location, Scott-Valdez said.

The city had reviewed six other potential properties for the wellness center before a search committee decided on Fran Kral. Among those considered were the former City Body Shop adjacent to City Hall, but it would have required extensive infrastructure improvements, Scott-Valdez said. Committee members also looked at several properties available for rent, but preferred to move into a space it owned rather than pay to lease property.